Middle Holocene Fishing Strategies in East Africa: Zooarchaeological Analysis of Pundo, a Kansyore Shell Midden in Northern Nyanza (Kenya)

TY - JOUR

T1 - Middle Holocene Fishing Strategies in East Africa: Zooarchaeological Analysis of Pundo, a Kansyore Shell Midden in Northern Nyanza (Kenya)

AU - Prendergast, M. E.

AU - Lane, P. J.

PY - 2010/1

Y1 - 2010/1

N2 - A zooarchaeological and taphonomic analysis is presented for the faunal remains from the Pundo shell midden in northern Nyanza province (Kenya), which contains Kansyore ceramics and dates to ca. 8000-7600 cal. BP. The faunal assemblage is overwhelmingly dominated by fish and molluscs, of which only the fish data are presented in detail. Taxonomic identifications suggest a diachronic change in relative species abundance, with cichlids becoming increasingly dominant, eventually comprising nearly 80% of the fish assemblage. The Pundo faunal data are compared with those from a number of other Kansyore sites. Pundo confirms that early Kansyore sites are purely forager sites, with domestic caprines only appearing at late Kansyore sites (post-dating ca. 4400 cal. BP). Comparing ethological data for fish taxa found at Pundo and other lakeshore shell middens with those for fish taxa found at larger riverside sites, a seasonal round is suggested, in which short-term fishing camps such as Pundo may have been occupied in the dry season, while riverside sites were probably occupied during the rainy season. Copyright (C) 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

AB - A zooarchaeological and taphonomic analysis is presented for the faunal remains from the Pundo shell midden in northern Nyanza province (Kenya), which contains Kansyore ceramics and dates to ca. 8000-7600 cal. BP. The faunal assemblage is overwhelmingly dominated by fish and molluscs, of which only the fish data are presented in detail. Taxonomic identifications suggest a diachronic change in relative species abundance, with cichlids becoming increasingly dominant, eventually comprising nearly 80% of the fish assemblage. The Pundo faunal data are compared with those from a number of other Kansyore sites. Pundo confirms that early Kansyore sites are purely forager sites, with domestic caprines only appearing at late Kansyore sites (post-dating ca. 4400 cal. BP). Comparing ethological data for fish taxa found at Pundo and other lakeshore shell middens with those for fish taxa found at larger riverside sites, a seasonal round is suggested, in which short-term fishing camps such as Pundo may have been occupied in the dry season, while riverside sites were probably occupied during the rainy season. Copyright (C) 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

KW - East Africa

KW - Holocene

KW - Kansyore

KW - zooarchaeology

KW - fishing

KW - shell midden

KW - hunter-gatherers

KW - LAKE VICTORIA

KW - OLDUVAI GORGE

KW - PROTOPTERUS-AETHIOPICUS

KW - PERCUSSION MARKS

KW - DIATOM RECORD

KW - LONG BONES

KW - HOMINID

KW - PATTERNS

KW - TANZANIA

KW - LUNGFISH

UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=77952827141&partnerID=8YFLogxK

U2 - 10.1002/oa.1014

DO - 10.1002/oa.1014

M3 - Article

SN - 1047-482X

VL - 20

SP - 88

EP - 112

JO - International Journal of Osteoarchaeology

JF - International Journal of Osteoarchaeology

IS - 1

ER -